The popularity of geodesic domes is widespread, but the construction of these structures by unskilled persons has generally been limited to those who purchase in kit form the entire system with a set of complimentary framework struts and connectors, or to those who can afford a prefabricated structure. Skilled carpenters have been able to make use of construction information such as that contained in The Dome Builder's, John Prenis, Editor, published by Running Press, Philadelphia, Pa., 1973, for example. Until now, there has been little development of basic, inexpensive components for the construction of geodesic domes which would allow the major materials of the structure to be purchased from stock materials available at local lumberyards without the need for unusual modifications or tools. Through the use of such standardized materials, it becomes easier for more people to make use of this efficient and economical building type.
There have been examples of plates utilized as structural joints for geodesic dome-type constructions. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,844,664 describes an icosahedron disk which is intended to be utilized as a structural joint for a geodesic dome of the icosahedron type. The icosahedron disk described in said patent includes pairs of holes therein for the two bolts used to attach the disk to the strut members. That disk is formed from a flat plate, with a pie-shaped portion cut out therefrom, which is then bent into the proper shape so as to have the proper angles between the flat plates of the disk to form an icosahedron-type structure. Similarly, the subject matter of U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,486,278; 3,857,212 and 3,990,195 disclose geometric dome connectors or plates which may be utilized to fabricate geodesic dome structures. Each of the joint structures or plates described in these patents is relatively complex in their manufacture and require assembly or welding of numerous parts together. U.S. Pat. No. 4,203,265 describes a hub and strut system for geometric domes which includes a flat plate forming the junction plates of each of the joints of the dome structure and is a system which requires careful and accurate machining of the strut members before they can be utilized by the junction plate disclosed in the specification of that patent. A building construction is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,270,478 which includes a junction plate therein with the junction plate having portions adapted to join to strut members, with the junction plate being formed through a process including elongation of the webs of the metallic material, thereby making the junction plate more costly and difficult to manufacture than if such stretching and elongation of the metallic web material was not required. Examples in the prior art are also known of frame systems or strut assemblies which connect to counterpart hubs and which require specific interconnection structure between the hub and strut systems, such systems are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,803,317; 3,270,478 and 3,857,212.